Previously, it has been desirable to have various bench mounted electrically powered workshop tools all mounted on a single large work bench, or more commonly, on several smaller workbenches. Unfortunately, space limitations in home workshops often restrict the installation of a single workbench of sufficient size to accommodate the range of bench mounted power tools typically found in a well equipped home workshop. These same space limitations also typically restrict mounting the tools on several smaller workbenches. There have been many attempts to deal with the problem of providing home craftsman the opportunity to use a number of different power tools in a limited space. In bygone eras when homes often included barns or other outbuildings where a separate workshop could be established the issue of lack of space to install bench mounted tools was less of a problem. However, in the present age which features homes with generally smaller lot sizes and few if any outbuildings, and where, in general, workshop space has shrunk in favor of home living space, the need for a space saving device which can store multiple bench tools and yet readily deploy such tools for use has grown more acute.
Many different power tool workbenches have been proposed over the years. Representative samples include U.S. Pat. No. 4,105,055 to Brenta, U.S. Pat. No. 4,523,617 to Tidemann, U.S. Pat. No. 5,722,473 to Tucker, and U.S. Pat. No. 7,077,179 to Camiano et al., among many others. However, it appears likely that most of these prior art workbenches or multi-tool work stations would meet with limited commercial success due to one or more of the following drawbacks, i.e. high cost, inability to provide ready access to a variety of bench style tools, impractical to manufacture due to excessive complexity, and overly time consuming tool change over.
Consequently, there remains a need in the art for a device that will provide home craftsman with access to the most commonly desired bench mounted power tools. Such tools would likely include a drill press, table saw, belt sander, and miter saw, among others. It is the purpose of the present invention to provide a device that stores and deploys for use bench mounted power tools. The device should take up a minimum of space, i.e. about the same space as a single workbench of modest size, and the tools should be easy for the home craftsman to deploy for use.